Good friends

This time, One Red Dot was truly determined. He used that broken sword to declare that if he ever fought Chu Liuxiang again, he would end up just like it!

Chu Liuxiang was still willing to trust a die-hard fan with a screw loose like this. Surely the man would not forget his own words by tomorrow? This ought to buy him a few peaceful days.

Otherwise, having a lunatic cling to him, demanding either to kill him or be killed by him, was quite a torment.

And as One Red Dot began showing signs of recovery, the investigation likewise emerged from dark willows into bright blossoms.

It did not matter that he could not read the letters, because he still had Black Pearl.

After witnessing Black Pearl's entanglement with the Beggar Gang and helping her escape their pursuit, he finally gained a dependable teammate. (One Red Dot did not count. What kind of teammate kept trying to hack his captain to death!)

Until then, Chu Liuxiang had essentially been investigating this case single-handedly. If not for Leng Qiuhun, that endlessly refreshing source of clues, constantly lending him a hand, he might already have sought out Fang Yunhua and tried to break through from another direction.

Black Pearl's addition to the team pushed the investigation a great step forward.

First, she helped Chu Liuxiang establish Qiu Lingsu's identity.

She was the wife of Ren Ci, the previous leader of the Beggar Gang.

Second, she relayed the contents of the letter Chu Liuxiang had been longing to read.

[We have been parted for many years. When I think of your grace, I am certain it must surpass even that of days gone by, while I have grown much more haggard. Now I have fallen into dire straits. I beg you to remember our old affection and lend me your aid. If you do not come, death is all that awaits me.]

Roughly translated, it meant: your goddess was in trouble, so why were you, her devoted lapdog, not coming to help!

And since Qiu Lingsu had written this letter, the investigation team focused its efforts on the former Beggar Gang leader's wife.

Black Pearl had investigated her circumstances but failed to obtain even a scrap of information from the Beggar Gang disciples. Later, Chu Liuxiang coaxed out of White Jade Demon Beggar that only Nangong Ling, the current leader of the Beggar Gang, knew her whereabouts.

At this point, Chu Liuxiang had not yet considered that Nangong Ling might be keeping Qiu Lingsu under house arrest.

Judging by the letters Qiu Lingsu had sent out, she must have inadvertently provoked some enormous trouble.

Nangong Ling had always presented himself as a filial son, so taking such measures to protect an elder of his family would not have been excessive. But when Chu Liuxiang subsequently approached Nangong Ling to lay his cards on the table, saying that he was investigating a case and needed Qiu Lingsu's help-

Events took a different turn from the original story.

Nangong Ling was alone in the spacious hall, yet several sets of cups and chopsticks rested on the table, with several jars of wine beneath it.

He seemed to have been waiting for Chu Liuxiang all along. Seeing Chu Liuxiang enter, he showed no surprise, merely rising, cupping his hands, and saying with a smile:

"Brother Chu, you really have come to collect that wine debt. Luckily, I prepared a few jars in advance. Otherwise, with you turning up here, I could only have fled for my life."

The two then exchanged pleasantries over the trivial matter of food and wine until a third person appeared.

"If Chu Liuxiang will not eat chicken, must he live on the northwest wind?" the newcomer said with a smile. "The toils of the mortal world have already left people with precious little spiritual sensibility. If they consume such fatty chicken and meat as well, I fear even what little remains will disappear."

A figure drifted out from the rear hall, dressed in plain robes and white socks, spotless from head to toe. Even his smile seemed untouched by worldly dust. It was none other than the Wonderful Monk Wuhua.

Chu Liuxiang kept smiling, while inwardly he began cursing up a storm.

After all, he had already all but confirmed Wuhua as one of the true culprits.

Now Nangong Ling, another man he regarded as a close friend, was hosting him together with Wuhua. If he still could not see that something fishy connected these two, and that they were very likely accomplices, he might as well stop making his way through the martial world.

Moreover, even without meeting Qiu Lingsu, he could now more or less piece together several clues.

For some unknown reason, Nangong Ling had placed Qiu Lingsu under house arrest, prompting her to secretly send letters appealing to those four devoted lapdogs for help. Wuhua and Nangong Ling had then induced Ximen Qian to kill Zuo Youzheng, before having Spirit Vulture kill Ximen Qian.

Next, they had made Zhamuhe cut down Spirit Vulture. As for Zhamuhe, the hardest to deal with, they had poisoned him with Heavenly One Divine Water.

Chu Liuxiang still could not fathom why Wuhua would help Nangong Ling, but this was at least a considerable improvement over before. Perhaps friendship bound the two together, perhaps shared interests, or perhaps some kind of relationship that had turned rotten.

In any case, once he found Qiu Lingsu, the truth would essentially come to light.

But would it really go so smoothly?

Chu Liuxiang's heart was heavy, even a little sorrowful. Nangong Ling was his friend, and Wuhua was his friend too. To prevent him from uncovering the truth, his two friends had plotted to kill him more than once along the way.

For Fragrant Marshal Chu, who valued friendship so highly, this was rather dispiriting.

Had Fang Yunhua been present, he would certainly have poured a bowl of poisoned chicken soup for the soul down his throat.

Compared with Lu Xiaofeng next door, Chu Liuxiang would have discovered that his own situation was actually quite good. After all, Lu Xiaofeng's friends did not merely want to kill him; they often took the initiative to draw him into their schemes and use him to achieve their goals.

They truly treated him like a dog to be toyed with at will, although in the end, they all underestimated Lu Xiaofeng and fell into their own traps.

By contrast, Chu Liuxiang's two friends repeatedly tried to kill him and block his investigation only because they feared he would uncover the truth and expose them. Both sincerely held him in high regard, believing that with his intelligence, he was certain to discover the truth.

One side took the offensive and fell, while the other counterattacked defensively and fell all the same. The distinction, and how it felt, was considerable.

So happiness was always something found through comparison.

Unfortunately, the present Chu Liuxiang had no Fang Yunhua to comfort him.

But he probably had not expected that, before he even revealed his purpose this time, Nangong Ling would offer him an opportunity to meet Qiu Lingsu.

"Brother Chu, have you heard some of the rumors circulating in the martial world these past few days?"

"The treasure theft at Mount Hua?" Chu Liuxiang rubbed his nose. Surely he isn't going to use this to bring up Fang Yunhua too, then pile suspicion onto him for all he's worth?

"No." Nangong Ling shook his head, looking somewhat gloomy. "They concern the death from illness of our Beggar Gang's previous leader. Somehow, fingers have started pointing at me, and quite a few people are secretly spreading rumors that Madam Ren and I are having an affair!"

In his anger, Nangong Ling slammed the table, making the bowls and plates tremble three times!

"Am I some beast with a wolf's heart and a dog's lungs!"

Chu Liuxiang nodded in support and encouragement. Yet when he caught sight of Wuhua from the corner of his eye, he could not be certain that Nangong Ling really was not such a beast. After all, when it came to appearances differing from reality, who could have imagined that the seemingly spotless Wonderful Monk would deceive an innocent woman and get her pregnant?

Wuhua alone had dealt Chu Liuxiang such a shock that he now felt anyone in the world might have two faces. If someone told him that the Amorous Young Master was secretly still a virgin, he might even...

Forget it. He truly could not nod along to that in good conscience.

"Brother Chu, I hope you can help me verify something!"

"Ah! Me?" Chu Liuxiang was rather bewildered. How was he supposed to verify this? He did not even know what sort of relationship Nangong Ling and Qiu Lingsu actually had.

"Because people in the martial world are also saying that I secretly murdered Madam Ren to obtain the position of gang leader. So I hope you can help prove that Madam Ren is safe, that she has voluntarily retired into seclusion somewhere, and that she has none of those sordid relationships with me, Nangong Ling!"